I keep coming back to any of John Steinbeck's books, particularly East of Eden. For movies I have to have a "Paint Your Wagon" fix on a regular basis.
I just got a couple of his books! I have the pasture of heaven and the pearl! Both on my TBR list! I want to get east of Eden! It’s highly recommended
@MajesticMango You won't be able to put East of Eden down.
@gem7 I've never read it, but now you've piqued my interest in Steinbeck's East of Eden.
My first go-to book as a kid was A Wrinkle In Time. Later, Goodbye, Mr. Chips and Orwell's Animal Farm were, and still are, favorites.
As for movies, Patton is a well worn DVD. I'm especially drawn to that scene where Patton solemnly stares across the ancient battlefield... repeating trumpets harken back to a time long ago, of which the General feels a powerful personal connection to.
@gem7 hopefully I find it the next time I go thrifting for books 🤞🏼 Philip K Dick is one author I’m keeping my eyes open for. Irvine Welsh, VC Andrews, Laurell k hamilton, and Anne Rice are frequently authors on my bookshelf.
@TxTom For sure Patton is a great one and that scene you described always gives the the chills.
@MajesticMango Thanks for the tips on authors. Kristin Hannah is one to check out also.
The movie is always better than book. Nerd.
@zigzagzig My experience is that many times the book is better. Movies are not always able to capture elements in the book due to time or other constraints.
I’ve always found that books are way better than the movie. The only time I’ve heard different is when they do a book after the movie.
Books are usually better, unless the movie is simply a visual experience.
A lot of Dennis Lehane’s books have been made into movies—Mystic River, Gone Baby Gone, The Drop, Live By Night, Shutter Island—come to mind, and some were done well. But none touched the depth, excitement or emotion of the books.
Same with Elmore Leonard—3:10 to Yuma, Out of Sight, Get Shorty, Be Cool, Jackie Brown, Hombre, 52 Pick-Up, Killshot, The Big Bounce, Mr Majestyk, Valdez is Coming—none were as good as the books.
@TheFunCartel Wow, some great examples. I love many of those movies but I agree about the books being better.
Every year I have to watch The Christmas Story
@waynewv I love that movie. Seen it about 15 times and still lol.
I usually watch star trek while munching.
@Bear I can't read a book that's been written after the movie. My go-to movies and books are the Harry Potter series. My kid and I used to wait in line together on book release night as the series gained popularity, and we always had tickets for opening night at the movie theatre, even if our show was for 1 am (and I had to work at 8 am.) Lots of special memories for us. (I found the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, at a resale shop in late 1997. Harry Potter wasn't yet a thing in the US. We were quick fans.)
@Bear @starrynitecuds Sometimes a book based on a movie is helpful, though. I read The Terminator, which was written by Bill Wisher (James Cameron's friend).
In the book, it is revealed that the terminator inspected the bodies of the first two Sarah Connors and Ginger to confirm it had eliminated the correct target. It was looking for a metal pin the leg bone, a result of a surgery.
However, it would never find the pin, as it was the result of Kyle Reese blowing up the terminator and a piece of shrapnel being lodged in Sarah's leg.
Granted, it's no East of Eden, but still...
@TxTom I am going to have to read The Terminator. Not familiar with Bill Wisher.
Oh wow! Those are some great suggestions to add to my reading list! 📚
A book I've read many times is The Stand ....by Stephen King. It's just so complex and I catch more details each time.
A movie....The Village! It's a combo of the unpredictable twist, the sweetness of the characters, the scary parts, the sad parts, the actors they chose....
Pretty much every single James Bond movie to be honest. Or maybe Clue, Princess Bride etc
Books:
Anything by Fredrik Backman The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
I can read them over and over.
I always heard that too about the book being better than the movie but I think they did a great job on The Shack. I knew right when I saw the previews that that's what it was.
@gem7 , I went to the house in Cleveland Ohio and had to buy the leg lamb and have by my front window, lol. Most everyone knows the movie
I can never get enough of Mall Cop with Kevin James. what a brilliant movie.
For movies, From Dusk Till Dawn, every Halloween. Funniest film of all time. And when I'm lonely, Taxi Driver with Robert De Niro is my personal favorite film of all time.
I'm getting some good tips on here. Thanks everyone. @waynewv Love that leg lamp. Its a major prize.
“Polyanna” theme of being positive in the face of adversity.
Anne of Green Gables is my comfort book series. 💜
☺️ The adventures of Baron Munchausen is another good one.
Laurell K Hamilton I've been reading her Anita Blake series for 20 years now, always a good revisit.... Though completely different from the others I like to read 😂😂
Movies would be a walk to remember, down to you, Marty, ordinary people. I was always a fan if the Artemis fowel boom series, I didn't have many friends, and when I discovered that series I couldn't stop reading, my mind would run wild picturing everything I read. Also was a big fan of Cynthia voight, the runner and a solitary blue, sadly I haven't read any books in a while, aside from my vast collection of information and education based books, I love facts, it's a well known joke about me that I'm a walking encyclopedia lol.
